1. Field of the Invention
The subject matter disclosed generally relates to the fields of health care and robotics.
2. Background Information
The increasing complexity of healthcare and resulting clinical specialization is causing fragmentation of care compromising patient safety and hospital efficiency. There is the need for availability of clinical specialist expertise to cut across time and space as well as the need for standardization and dissemination of best practices and protocols for optimal quality of care for citizens regardless of where they live.
The need for clinical specialist expertise is especially acute in the diagnosis, and treatment of stroke whereby immediate access to expertise and interdisciplinary communication and collaboration is key. Stroke is the second cause of death worldwide and the third leading cause of death in the United States. Recent development of several new therapies including tPA and neuro-endovascular procedures such as coiling offers real hope to change the once bleak prognosis for stroke victims. However, these new therapies are not widely available. Nationally, fewer than 5% of stroke victims are receiving any sort of treatment compared with leading stroke centers where approximately 25% of victims are treated. Most community hospitals do not have the basic patient assessment capability in place on a 24/7 basis nor have they established the appropriate ED treatment protocols. Additionally, only a very few hospitals have the specialists on staff required for neuro-endovascular procedures. Therefore stroke patients are either immediately transferred without proper evaluation or go untreated.
A major challenge in delivering stroke care relates to the time elements of stroke. The adage “time is brain” is often heard. The challenge is to get the right expertise and treatment to the patient at the right time. This encompasses the entire continuum of care from emergency medical services and ambulance transport to evaluation in the ED and definitive treatment. Some stroke care guidelines have been established by the National Institute for Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). For example, the guidelines suggest getting a patient with symptoms of stroke to stroke expertise (e.g. neurologist, stroke team activation) within fifteen minutes. The use of the word “expertise” here is significant in that the expert need not be physically present next to the patient but could be made available through a consult, for example, over the phone.